


there's a light

by elysiumwaits



Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst with a Happy Ending, But I fix it, Canonical Character Death, Gen, Loyalty, Post-Canon Fix-It, So don't worry, Zack Fair Lives, Zack/Cloud if you squint, mentions of Zack/Aerith
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2020-09-26
Packaged: 2021-03-07 19:47:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 479
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26663158
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elysiumwaits/pseuds/elysiumwaits
Summary: Zack's got a second chance, and he's not going to waste it.
Comments: 1
Kudos: 8
Collections: Trick or Treat Exchange 2020





	there's a light

**Author's Note:**

  * For [BlueWolves](https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueWolves/gifts).



> Hey! I saw your prompts and likes and hopped right on board. I hope this is okay, just as a little treat!

Zack gasps his way to life on the top of the cliff where he died. 

It startles him, scares him - he can see the sky instead of the endless, comforting cotton-white of the Lifestream. When he manages to suck in a breath, he smells dust and rock. He's on his back on the ground, and when he curls his fingers he feels the earth give just a little beneath them. There will be dirt and dust under his nails now, and all along the line of his back where he's laying in it. 

"I don't understand," he breathes, searching the sky with questioning eyes.

It doesn't answer him.

Instead, Zack carefully rolls over and goes to stand. He freezes there, on his hands and knees, breath caught once more. In front of him, driven deep into the ground, is his own sword. The Buster Sword, starting to rust from the weather and the elements. His eyes follow it all the way up to the hilt as he breathes out shakily. 

He knows why it's here. It's a marker, proof that someone remembered Zack's existence. Before he died on this cliff, in this very spot. All of a sudden, Zack knows why he's breathing air and dust, why he's suddenly alive when he's been dead for years. A smile tugs at the corner of his lip when he drops his head. After a moment, he climbs to his feet and wipes the tears away with the back of his wrist. The hilt fits the curve of his hand like it always has, leather under his skin warm from the sun and rough from the wind. He's got his sword, he's got his armor, and he's got his life.

Zack looks to the sky again. "I can't believe you just kicked me out like that!" he calls playfully and grins through the tears. There's a distant sound that Zack can't really make out, but it feels like a giggle. If Zack closes his eyes, he can see Aerith: hands clasped behind her back and rocking on her feet with that mischievous glint in her eye. He can keep that for himself, hold it close to his heart just as much as he can let it go. 

The wind picks up, and there's a faint floral scent that Zack can immediately recognize as lilies. He breathes it in. "Thank you," he says to the wind and the sky and the woman who isn't here with him.

Then Zack rolls his neck, grips the hilt of his sword, and slowly pulls it from the ground. There's no need for a grave marker when there's no grave anymore. The sword is obviously not at it's best, but it will do, Zack decides. And even if it doesn't, even if it breaks, it won't stop Zack from getting to Midgar. 

He needs to find Cloud.


End file.
